


Abandoned

by Sephypsycologist



Series: Tumblr Requests: Undertale [40]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, mentions of neglect and starvation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-12
Updated: 2019-01-12
Packaged: 2019-10-09 02:50:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17398610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sephypsycologist/pseuds/Sephypsycologist
Summary: Red wanders the castle a lot when he gets called to Judge for the king. Usually he doesn't find anything he didn't expect.Today was not a usual day.





	Abandoned

Red wasn’t used to finding something he hadn’t known about.

Every time he uncovered something dark and gross about his world, he’d already figured it out before hand and was prepared.

Until now.

A little human, barely the size of his hand, was sitting here, in the freaking COFFIN ROOM. And they were chained to the wall. And clearly starving if them sucking on moss was any indication.

“oh stars, what the fuck is wrong with people?!”

The tiny body jolts, but doesn’t move more, still looking down even if they spit out their moss.

Red growls, but it’s more at himself than anything else. He needs to control his temper.

Stooping down, he yanked the delicate chain, snapping the links from the wall and making the tiny person hiss in pain. Keeping hold of the remaining length, Red snatched the little human into his hands and vanished.

King or no king, Asgore had gone too far this time.

\--

Weak.

That was what everyone had said.

Weak soul, weak body, weak mind.

And now they were even more helpless as this skeleton made off with them.

Stuffed into a pocket filled with mustard packets, the human stayed put.

It hadn’t even been worth the king’s time to kill them. He’d left them to die, alone, in the same room as the bodies of his previous victims.

It was almost comical, that they were going to die as one of those skeletons chained to the wall, like in the comic books.

But now, they had no idea what was going to happen.

The skeleton was moving around, doing something, and they were too weak with hunger and thirst to be able to do anything about it. Not that they could even if they were healthy.

It takes a while, but soon enough, they smell something and it makes their body shudder with pain. Food. He’s making food.

There’s no denying they want it, and when they hear liquid pouring, they groan. But they don’t expect to get any.

The skeleton soon drags them out of the pocket and sits them (surprisingly gently) on the table.

“eat,” he says, flatly. They can’t even move, but he seems to know, and tilts a spoon against their mouth.

The broth is flavorful and thick, and he only lets them get a few mouthfuls before pulling the spoon back. “uh uh, tiny tot. gotta take this slow so ya don’t hurt y’re self. My name’s red, an’ I know ya probably can’t answer right now about your own, but that’s fine.”

They don’t know how to react to this. Food, concern, such gentle handling has become alien to them. And they’re too dehydrated to even cry.

\--

Red alternates between a spoon of soup and a spoon of water. He’s slow, and soon enough they don’t take any more of either, shaking their head when offered more.

“okay bud. Ya did good. now we’re gonna get you some kinda better clothes and a bath, ‘n I gotta find a big tissue box ta make you a bed outta,” the human just nodded as he spoke, shuddering as he picked them up in gentle hands.

He didn’t know what to do, honestly, but this was as good a start as any. He’d treat them the way Grillbz had treated him when he’d found Red and his brother starving on the streets. As hotheaded as the fire elemental was, he had a good soul and had fed them and kept them safe until Red had enough to buy the house they lived in now. This was the tab he always joked with Grillbz about, and Grillby just shrugged it off.

A wide shallow bowl and some slightly warm water served as a bathtub, and there were plenty of tiny flecks of old soap bars lying around in the bathroom. “can ya take that stuff of yourself?”

The head shake told him enough, and Red very carefully teased the ragged pants and shirt off the emaciated body they clung to. “aw, geeze, kid, you look like me. well…me if I was skinnier.” Their bones were clearly visible, horrifyingly thin and dirty as they were. “c’mon. this’ll feel good, and we’ll heal ya up. can’t put any meat back on those bones, but I can fix any damage starvin’ caused ya.”

They let him move them, and he tried to be as easy with them as he could. The water turned brown by the time he finished, and Red grabbed a soft, green washcloth to wrap them up in and dry them. “there ya go. This’ll keep ya warm and comfy till I can talk some little clothes out of my brother.”

Bringing them to the couch with him, Red held their bundle like a baby, gently touching his finger to the top of their head, “just relax, pipsqueak. This’ll make ya better, and maybe sleepy, too. let it happen.”

They closed their eyes, and he concentrated on them, how sorry he was for them, how much seeing them had made him want to protect them, and how much he wanted them to feel better. It was enough to trigger what little healing power he had, and the soft green of kindness glowed at the end of his finger. The healing magic slid down their body, touching withered muscle and shriveled nerves with rejuvenation. This would help, with the food and water, and being clean….hopefully they’d be okay.

“and as soon as you feel better, I’ll find some way to get those cuffs off ya, too. just need a magnifier or somethin’,” he murmured to them, despite sensing that they were passed out from shock and exhaustion. “ain’t nobody gonna treat ya bad like that again. You can bank on that.”


End file.
